Growing Sweet Corn

Corn (Maize) is normally classed as a grain, however this variety, Sweet Corn, can be eaten as a vegetable.

As a vegetable it would have to be one of the most delicious veggies grown fresh. Store bought, so called fresh, sweet corn is always found lacking due to one important fact. After harvesting corn cobs, the sugars in the corn rapidly convert to starch, unless you eat it raw quickly, cook it or store it just above 0°C (32°F) until blanched and frozen. Store bought sweet corn tastes bland and starchy because these conditions are not met.

So knowing that fact, one would naturally want to grow ones own sweet corn to get maximum flavour, wouldn’t one?

Let me tell you that growing corn is easy. It is grown from seed, which you can either sow early to get a head start in your green house by planting in it tubes, like I did this season, or plant directly in to soil which has had lots of home made compost dug through it.

Planting Sweet Corn from seedlings

I managed to get my corn in the ground in late October. Normally the soil would not be warm enough for the seed to germinate until late spring in our climate, So I managed to get one months head start.

Sweet Corn needs regular watering, after all, the corn kernels are mostly water. I tend to irrigate every few days after testing the soil with my finger. If it comes out moist, I check again the next day and water if necessary. A heavy mulch, 10 cm (4 inches) deep, of either straw or sugar mulch helps trap in the moisture during our long dry summer.

I don’t fertilize my sweet corn, as I add so much organic matter into the soil before planting. Additionally, I also planted about eight lazy housewife runner beans throughout the beg after I planted the seedlings. These plants provided additional nitrogen for the corn, which helped keep them healthy. Your corn stalks will grow to about 900mm (3 feet), but some varieties grow taller, with more than one ear per stalk.

Sweet Corn fully grown

Most varieties these days are F1 hybrids which you cannot regrow from saved seed, however you can buy heirloom cultivars from places like Diggers or Eden seeds which you can save seed from. This year I grew hybrids Honey Sweet, and Early Sweet, however I cannot tell the difference between the two. They just taste delicious.

You can tell when the ears are ready to eat by doing a couple of little tests. The silk on the ear should be dark brown, and if you open the husk and press one of the kernels with your thumb nail you should get a milky liquid.

Sweet Corn ears ready for harvest

To harvest the corn, grab the ear firmly, then pull it downward and give it a twist. It comes off quite easily, leaving the stalk intact, which is essential if there are more than two ears per plant.

Corn harvested by Ben!

Then, if you are going to eat them raw I would recommend that you eat them as quickly as possible for full flavour.

Sweet Corn in husk

Once the corn cobs are cleaned, you can throw the husk straight into the compost bin or worm farm. They decompose rapidly, and worms love them.

De-husked, ready for the pot.

If you are going to cook them, then quickly pop them in a pot of salted water and bring to the boil. Bring down the the simmer for 10 minutes. Then drain and serve with a little butter smeared over the ear. Eat whilst hot, and it is delicious.

You can also freeze sweet corn by blanching it for 5 minutes to stop the sugar to starch conversion, then cut in half and freeze. It stores for about six months if then vacuum packed and frozen.

So, with the favour differential between store bough sweet corn and home grown fresh being a factor of a bajillion, it pays to grow your own if you have space. You will never regret this decision and wonder why you didn’t do it sooner.

I love fresh sweet corn. How about you?

Will this article help someone you know? If so help them out by sharing now!

Related

About Gavin Webber

Gavin Webber's daily goal is to live a more sustainable lifestyle, in an effort to reduce his family's environmental footprint so we can all make a difference for our children & future generations to come.

Comments

Good job, Gavin. It looks delicious. Corn is also great grilled on the BBQ. The sugars caramelize, making for great flavour.When I was young, we lived on 10 acres of very fertile farm land in southern Ontario, Canada. We had a one acre garden, and my dad grew lots of veggies. Corn and tomatoes were his speciality. I remember getting lots of corn to eat as a child. It is also yummy made into corn relish and canned. It goes well with pork or chicken. Happy eating!Barb from Canada

Gavin, you’ve touched on a subject near and dear. I also live in SW Ontario, corn country. Acres of it…the very best parties are ‘corn roasts’ through latter July/August. Usually a huge fire with a trough of boiling water–one shucks one’s own cobs and tosses it in. One memorable party was right next to an entire field of the best sweet corn I ever recall, and we fancy that we are connaisseurs. One thing that is commonly said by purists is to get the water to a rolling boil–before you pick the corn–and shuck it while running to the stove…four minutes, tops, at the boil. Make sure it’s young and tender, not overripe to be tough. I also ‘do up’ about 2.5 bushels of sweet corn for the freezer for winter; as you say, blanch it on the cob for 3-4 minutes, then plunge in ice water. We slice the kernels off (if with an electric knife, these slice as smoothly as butter) and quickly freeze them in meal-sized bags. Outside is best as it is a messy job. Uncle’s horses love the leftover cobs. Corn, beans and squash are known to our First Nations people as the ‘Three Sisters’–it is a perfect companion planting for runner beans to climb the corn stalks (and for nitrogen fixing), but also for squash planted at the base of the plants which I suppose acts as a mulch. (I’ve also read that a dead fish was buried under each corn plant in those days!) These three food sources together are sacred in that culture, and I believe when eaten together compose a complete protein, a major component of their diet. Although the ‘maize’ at that time would have been more like field corn and allowed to mature to be ground into flours and etc. Happy eating! PS Corn chowder (if there are any leftovers atall!) is wonderful stuff.

When I was a kid, when we’d have a picnic on the beach, we’d roast sweet corn right in the husks. Throw the corn in the lake (check first to see which way the wind was from, so the corn would float back to the beach, and not away) and let it roll around in the water for an hour or more. Then put it right around the edges of the fire, use tongs to turn and keep it from burning. The wet husks would steam the corn, but in places it would singe. Yum. Pull the husks back (carefully) – after they’ve cooled a bit, they make a nice handle. Season with butter and salt. Best. Sweet corn. Ever.

Thanks Gav for the post – love sweetcorn and am on to my third planting of the season though Qld summer is proving to be a challenge!! I normally plant direct but after the last lot got mauled by caterpillars I have planted seedlings in a layered pot(leaves, greens, veg, manure etc) and so far so good – healthy and moisture kept in!!

We planted corn last year for the first time ever, we only planted 6 stalks and it was the best gardening experience ever. The cobs were so delicious and the boys loved getting them from the garden, shucking, cooking and finally eating them. We have doubled our corn crop this year, we had plans to plants beans in around them too, but one of my kids stuck in a watermelon seed and now there is a watermelon monster instead, and it already has little watermelons growing.

Hello Gavin.I live in England and garden 8000 sq ft with flowers, fruit and vegetable, with loys of corn! LOVE it!! There is a point here for you and your other readers .. the silk of the corn, if dried and then chopped, put into a mug with boiling water added, makes an extremely good ‘tea’ for anyone who suffers from ANY inflamation of the Urinary tract or has a problem with their Kidneys.. In Europe it is sold at Pharmacies packaged by VitaFlor or sold loose by the gram.Keep on writing Gavin.. best wishes from chilly and slightly damp London.

King Parrots also love sweet corn. Cover with light shade cloth and they get underneath …… cover growing cobs individually and they rip the cobs off to get to them …… my garden is totally secured from bandicoots, wallabies, you name it but King Parrots one cannot keep out, unless I chicken wire all around the individual plot and on top. Has to be tall as corn grows tall and so it goes on. The local farmers market has pretty good corn!!!!! Joy

I hope you don’t have the worries or concerns we are having here in the U.S. over GMO crops and seed showing up in our stores and backyard gardens. Your gardens always look great and your corn looks fantastic. Keep it up!

After this summer, I too intend on getting more rainwater storage. I have room for another 2000L slimline tank in the carport that I can hook up to the second tank. I should be able to grow much more next year.

Follow my work

About Gavin Webber

An Ordinary Australian Man Who Has A Green Epiphany Whilst Watching A Documentary, Gets a Hybrid Car, Plants A Large Organic Vegetable Garden, Goes Totally Solar, Lowers Consumption, Feeds Composts Bins and Worms, Harvests Rainwater, Raises Chickens, Makes Cheese and Soap, and Eats Locally. All In The Effort To Reduce Our Family's Carbon Footprint So We Can Start Making A Difference For Our Children & Future Generations To Come.

Feedjit

TGOG Readers On-line

Podcast Reviews

Always inspiring and entertaining!

August 4, 2016 by floriographer from Australia

I've crowed about Gavin's podcast before but I just have to recommend it once again - I love that he shares his learning as well as his successes - it helps the rest of us try try try again! Thanks Gavin!

ms

July 22, 2016 by Ketaea12 from New Zealand

I really enjoy listening to Gavin, he has a kind lovely voice. He covers some great relevant topics for the everyday greenie. With lots of tips or how to or what not to do.
Thanks Gavin, love it!!

Well worth your time to tune in

October 23, 2015 by A Vision Splendid from Australia

I can highly recommend Gavin’s podcast !
I have followed Gavin’s blog since the very beginning and have loved to see his journey unfold. Gavin has a lovely speaking voice so this podcast is always very easy to listen to.
Gavin has a very authentic approach to his green living lifestyle. He shares the ups and downs but always provides motivation and practical steps that we can all implement.

very good

June 28, 2015 by Scared pax from United Kingdom

This is a great podcast if you want to improve your life in so many aspects and become a more sustainable person. I love the soothing voice, the good pace, and it contains lots of useful information. Recommended!

opened my eyes

May 25, 2015 by Gorn4lyfe from Australia

A wonderful show!

Inspiring

April 30, 2015 by Alan Whelan from Ireland

This is a great podcast if you're looking for practical info on saving money by living more sustainably from someone who's made that journey over the last few years. Told in a nice, easy conversational style

Green Living, inspiring and practical

January 8, 2015 by EliseMac from Australia

Thanks Gav for sharing what has (and hasn't) worked along your journey for living a greener lifestyle. Inspiring and achievable for anyone, I look forward to this podcast weekly.

Local food equals less waste

December 27, 2014 by allotmentadventureswithjean from Australia

Another brilliant podcast from Gavin Webber encouraging us, and showing us how, to cut down on food miles, growing our own food, and cutting down on food waste. Gavin is a really interesting speaker, showing us how to eat better, growing our own food and how to live more sustainably.

Honestly australian

December 15, 2014 by HodgepodgeOz from Australia

Fantastic podcast, with a wide variety of well thought and researched topics. Gavin is a honest, forthright pod aster with a genuine interest in helping others get green. Like a day alongside is a day wasted, so too is a week without listening to Gavin. Highly recommended for people starting out, or those in the midst of their new lifestyle. Keep it up Gavin, wish there were more great reviews! Kimberley

Morning motivation

December 8, 2014 by Bunnyworm from Australia

Gavin has a great passion for living this greener lifestyle that motivates others to do the same. The podcasts are always interesting and informative. :)

Passionate Advocate

October 18, 2014 by BoomOpGirl from Australia

Gavin's enthusiasm and passion for creating a more sustainable world is nothing short of contagious. Thanks Gav, you are my weekly source of motivation for living a sustainable life! :)

Gavin speaks from the heart

October 13, 2014 by Green gavin from Australia

Gavin's podcasts are required listening for anyone planning to live a more sustainable life. He doesn't preach, but tells you his story from the heart. You'll laugh, smile, share in his concerns and along the way you'll pick up some great tips on living a simple life.

Green thoughts, so well iterated

October 9, 2014 by Kwasikwami from Australia

This is a wonderful podcast. Not only does Gavin talk knowledgeably on a range of sustainability topics from gardening tips all the way to the issues facing humanity as a whole, but he does so in such a wonderful voice, it's like listening to my Dad, love it!!

Easy listening inspiration on being green

September 24, 2014 by Broomedy from Australia

Gav knows how to share his journey to a more sustainable life in a manner that shows just how easy it really is. Not to mention healthier, economically beneficial and generally rewarding. The podcasts are an easy way to absorb Gav's great lifestyle. I recommend to anyone.

Thanks Gavin!

August 31, 2014 by Honeywoodmilk from Australia

Great practical advice for a greener lifestyle. This podcast is for anybody interested in growing their own food in suburbia, saving electricity, brewing beer, making cheese, all that wonderful business and most of all, saving money! Thanks Gavin, love the podcast mate!

Enjoyed those ideas for staying warm

August 15, 2014 by enduringdragon from United States

Like you we are having winter here in Chile—brrr! Every bit we can save on heating we will.

Green Podcasts

July 26, 2014 by Carneu from Australia

Excellent podcasts, which are full of information to help get started on a sustainable lifestyle.

Practical ideas and inspiration

July 19, 2014 by HeathrowHeath from Australia

I highly recommend Gavin's podcast and blog. Down to earth, entertaining and inspirational. Thank you.

Interesting & easy to listen to

April 27, 2014 by Velocity3 from New Zealand

Gavin & his guests make this green journey lots of fun.

Great green listen

April 18, 2014 by Obscurenickname from Australia

Gavin is a great down to earth, tell it like it is aussie with a passion for sustainability and growing food and making cheese